a lectionary resource for Catholics

Surprise! He's Coming!

Popular Translation

1 Brothers and sister,
you don't need me to write you about the general time or the exact
moment when Jesus will return. 2 You surely know that the Day of the
Lord will come without warning, like a thief does in the night. 3
When people say, "Everything is safe and peaceful," that's when
disaster strikes! A pregnant woman feels the same surprising jolt
when she first goes into labor. 4 But, brothers ans sisters, you are
not in the dark so the Day of the Lord will catch you off guard. You
are all children of God's light. All of us do not live dark lives or
hide like we come out only at night. 6, So, we should not act like
we were asleep. We should be alert and level-headed as we wait for
Jesus to return.

Literal Translation

1 Concerning the time
span and the exact moment (of the end time), brothers, you do not
have need (for anything) to be written to you, 2 for you yourselves
surely know that the Day of the Lord comes thus as a thief in the
night. 3 When (people) say, "Peace and security," then sudden
destruction rises upon them, just like the (sudden) birth pang in
the (pregnant) womb. 4 But you, brothers, are not in the dark, so
that the day should overtake you as a thief. 5 For you are all sons
of light, sons of the day. We are neither of the night, nor of the
dark. 6 So then, we should not fall asleep, but we should remain
awake and sober.

5:1 "the time span and
the exact moment" is "chronos" and "kairos" in Greek. "Chronos" is
the flow of time (as in "chronological time"). "Kairos" is the exact
moment (as in "the right time"). Paul echoed Jesus' warning in Acts
1:7 about speculation over the end times.

After Paul reassured the
Thessalonians about the fate of those who died before the return of
Jesus, he turned his attention to the favorite hobby of many
Christians: speculating about the end times. He reminded his
audience that trying to pinpoint the time frame of Jesus' return was
futile. In fact, the Day of the Lord will come as a shock! Paul
echoed a favorite image of Israel's prophets for the arrival of the
Lord: the rushing onset of labor (Jer. 6:24; 22:23; Mic. 4:9).
Notice that Paul implicitly saw this as God's work alone. This
belief contradicted that of many Jews who believed that revolution
or a righteous life would hasten the coming of the Lord. Paul
inferred this was God's work alone, not man's.

Faith, however, empowered
the Christian. He or she certainly knew that the Lord would return;
they just didn't know when. This anticipation was not merely to be
felt, but to be lived in a Christian lifestyle. Notice the qualities
Paul used for the Christian who looked to the coming of Jesus.
Living as children of the light, of the day. Living sober, alert
lives. Paul would compare these qualities to those who lived
shamefully in the shadows or in a stupor, like the sleepy or the
drunk (see 5:7, not translated).

How we live reflects how
seriously take the Christian message. We should live like we are
ready for the coming of the Lord.

Are you ready for the
coming of Jesus? How can you get ready for his return?

Permission for use. All materials
found in word-sunday.com are the property of Larry Broding (Copyright
1999-2014). Viewers may copy any material found in these pages for
their personal use or for use in any non-profit ministry. Materials
may not be sold or used for personal financial gain.